Shloka 23
धृतराष्ट्र–दुर्योधन संवादः
Vāraṇāvata-vivāsana-nīti: Dhṛtarāṣṭra and Duryodhana’s Policy Dialogue
ततो<5थिजम्मु: सर्वे ते धनुर्वेदं महारथा: । धृतराष्ट्रात्मजाश्वैव पाण्डवा: सह यादवै:,धृतराष्ट्रके महारथी पुत्र, पाण्डव तथा यादव--सबने उन्हीं कृपाचार्यसे धनुर्वेदका अध्ययन किया
tato ’dhijagmuḥ sarve te dhanurvedaṁ mahārathāḥ | dhṛtarāṣṭrātmajāś caiva pāṇḍavāḥ saha yādavaiḥ ||
Then all those great chariot-warriors went on to master the science of archery: the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, and likewise the Pāṇḍavas together with the Yādavas. In the narrative frame, this shared training under a single preceptor underscores both the ideal of equal instruction and the tragic irony that the same discipline and martial virtue will later be turned against one another in fratricidal conflict.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya ideal that martial knowledge (dhanurveda) is a disciplined science to be learned under proper guidance, and it implicitly points to the ethical tension that the same education can serve either protection of dharma or destructive rivalry, depending on character and intent.
Vaiśampāyana states that the principal royal youths—Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, the Pāṇḍavas, and the Yādavas—proceeded to study dhanurveda and became great warriors, setting the stage for later competitions and the eventual conflict.